Counter Culture

The term "counter culture" really irks me at times, because it makes me think of some whack-job, off the wall way of thinking. But when I think of something in particular that really sets me off lately, I can only think to call my way of thinking about this particular topic a "counter culture." Now, there are only two supposed "counter cultures" I could say that I subscribe to, the first being Catholicism. Catholicism is my faith, and being at a massive, public university like I am right now really shows me how much of a minority Catholics are. Additionally it shows me that we are not as crazy as other people make us out to be; we are just a group of people with a shared faith. But I diverge from what brought me to write, and the topic of this post is not Catholicism in a secular world.

The second "counter culture" I believe I subscribe to is this interesting way of thinking when it comes to health, eating, beauty, and body image. I was brought to write here today because, I am growing ever more tired and fed up with the constructed mindset our society has on these topics, and it really makes me sick. I do not get mad often, and I don't even know if I would call this feeling mad, but I would say that lately, I have been getting close to it when I think of it. Now, this "counter culture" mindset that I have on these topics are odd to me because I can totally recognize and see how off-the-wall and different they sound to someone listening to or reading my ideas because, hey, we have been told many things every day about these issues, and I am going steadfast against it in many ways. But I cannot feel at ease about the issues by just accepting the mindset that society has given me, and I therefore, have to, in a way, "roll with it."

Our society today puts so much on looks, appearance, the superficial nature of people. We read magazines and watch TV shows telling us directly, but more often indirectly, that "thin is in", that when it comes to eating "less is more," and worst of all, that the value of a human individual is found in how they look and appear to the masses. The value of a person, accordingly, is in what they look like, what they eat, and how much they exercise.

Let me make one thing clear. If I died today, and could say that I only learned one thing in my short, yet traveled life, I would say this: That is the farthest thing from the truth. It would be hard to explain to someone who has not been in my shoes, but in my experiences, I have learned too much about people on the inside, and what makes a person who they are. I know far too well what it feels like to be overweight, to be "healthy-weight", to be thin. I know what its like to feel like no one will ever love you because you don't look good enough. I know what its like. I have been there. My life has been a seesaw of feeling the "what it's likes" that I speak about. My experiences give me the credibility and ethos for you to trust me and believe me when I say that nothing in this world is farther from the truth.

The value of human beings is something that cannot be touched, cannot be advertised in a fashion magazine or television show. The value of you, or any other person, is found deep within you. It is something we are born with, and therefore cannot be earned, cannot be tarnished, cannot be devalued or inflated based on who we are or what our societal title is. It is the simple fact that we are human beings, made in the image of God, for this world, that gives us our value. It is the emotions we feel, the people we meet, the experiences we enjoy and the experiences we struggle through. Nothing on the outside, not the width of hips, or the stretch marks on my stomach, or the number that appears when I step on the scale, can change that.

It is because of this, that I shudder when I am with friends, and I hear one (or more) of them speak of how much they want to "get a milkshake" or "have another cookie" or anything else of that nature, but they say they cannot because "they will get fat" or they will "gain weight." It pains me to hear this! Do they not know that I would love them no matter how overweight or underweight or tall or short or albino or purple they are? Granted, I know people don't value their lives around what I think of them, but the truth of the matter is their value is not decided on whether or not they get a milkshake. Their value is God-given, not of this world, and that is why I wish they could see that.

The "counter culture" way of thinking I alluded to at the beginning of this is simply that I look at health in a different way. When it comes to health, I believe that we are all aging and we are all physically going downhill after 20. I know that I am most likely going to be heavier when I am 40 than I am today. Its like gravity. I can throw an apple in the air, and pray to the heavens that it doesn't fall back towards the ground, but it is still going to happen.

When it comes to eating, I think people should eat to be healthy. If you order a salad at a restaurant, do it because you genuinely feel like a salad, because it sounds delicious. Do not do it because you feel like you must, or your going to gain weight if you don't. None of that matters, it really doesn't. When it comes to exercising, exercise for fun, exercise for good health, exercise because its been too long since you have gotten off your lazy butt! But do not go to the gym to burn calories. That is not healthy, I do not care what Dr. Oz or anyone else says.

And finally, when it comes to beauty, its even simpler. I am me, you are you, everyone is themselves. That is what beauty is. Beauty is the fact that I am unique in my appearance, and no one else shares the exact same genetics or physical features as I do. And guess what? That applies to ev-er-y-one.

So do what you can to be healthy and eat well. But do not do it because you have to maintain beauty. Beauty, true, deep, inner beauty, like our human value, cannot be changed by things of this worldly nature.